storiesofvalue

The church I serve is surrounded by military bases.  Since the terrorist attacks on 9-11-01, security at the bases has been tight.  When perform a wedding ceremony or pray at a retirement on base, I have to be cleared at the gated entrance.  Sometimes my car is searched, and every now and then someone with military clearance has to escort me in.  Once or twice my name has been missing from the guest list and I have had to call for help.

There are a few items I might be asked to produce when I arrive at the gate: my driver’s license, a current vehicle registration, a valid insurance card and a safety inspection receipt.  If I don’t have these things, and the guards at the gate choose to, they can deny access.

However, where I live everything I need to get into a military base for a special occasion is also required to operate a motor vehicle.  This means if I live in a constant state of readiness on a daily basis, I will always have what I need when it’s time to pass a base checkpoint.

The scriptures indicate Jesus’ return will happen without warning (1 Thessalonians 5:1-2).  But even if we had a little advanced notice, I don’t think our Lord would be pleased to find us scrambling around at the last-minute to get ready.  Jesus said it will be good for those servants whose master finds them ready, not frantically pulling things together (Luke 12:37).  Therefore, it is imperative that we prepare now.  It will certainly be too late on the last day, and if we wait we will also miss the joy in this life we are so determined to experience in the next.

When I was a child my Sunday School teacher taught our class a song based loosely on Jesus’ Parable of the Ten Virgins.  We sang, “Give me oil in my lamp, keep me burning, burning, burning.  Give me oil in my lamp I pray.  Give me oil in my lamp, keep me burning, burning, burning.  Keep me burning ‘til the break of day.”  The message of the song was clear.  We were to burn with the presence of Jesus in our lives, all of our lives, until His return.

Nothing has changed since I was a child.  In fact, I am closer to my rendezvous with Jesus than I have ever been before.  I’ve never been perfect, but since January 31^st, 1966, when I walked forward in a Sunday evening worship service, proclaimed my faith in Jesus and was baptized, I have been ready: not perfect, but ready.  Jesus said He would be ready for me.  I want to do the same for Him.

Getting Ready

When Jesus comes back, or if we die first, we want to be ready to meet Him.  Since we don’t know the day or hour we will meet Him, we can’t wait until the last-minute to prepare.  Not only would this be unwise, but it would also run counter to the kind of relationship our Savior wants to have with us.  Jesus wants us to be enthusiastic about His return, and He wants our anticipation to define how we live in the meantime.

Near the end of Jesus’ ministry, His disciples asked Him to further define His second coming and the end of the age (Matthew 24:3). In response Jesus told a parable about ten virgins who were waiting for a bridegroom to arrive at his wedding feast (Matthew 25:1-13).  The bridegroom was delayed and the virgins became drowsy and fell asleep.  At midnight, the announcement finally came that the bridegroom was coming, and the virgins woke up.  Five of them, who had wisely stocked up on oil, trimmed their lamps, but the other five were foolishly unprepared.  The foolish virgins begged the five wise virgins to share their oil, and when they refused they were forced to go buy their own.  While they were gone the bridegroom came and the five wise virgins went into the wedding feast with him.  When the five foolish virgins returned they found the door shut.  They shouted out, “Sir, Sir, open the door for us!”  But the answer came, “I tell you the truth, I don’t know you.”  Jesus summed up His parable with these words: “Therefore keep watch, because you do not know the day or the hour” (Matthew 25:12-13).

You may be aware there is a divergence of opinion on how this parable should be interpreted in reference to one’s personal salvation.  The discussion centers on the spiritual state of the five foolish virgins.  Do they represent believers who once loved Jesus, but missed out on the wedding feast because they fell away at the final hour?  Or are they casual spectators who didn’t really have a relationship with Jesus in the first place?

These are important questions, but I ask that you allow me to set them aside for the purpose of focusing on one truth everyone can agree on: when we see Jesus face-to-face, we must be ready.  If we aren’t where we need to be to enter His feast, we need to change course immediately, while there is time.

There are two mistakes we can make as we wait.  One is to be so consumed by our thoughts of heaven we live as if earth doesn’t matter.  The other is to be so preoccupied with our lives on earth we live as if heaven doesn’t matter. Both philosophies will rob of us the joy Jesus wants us to have as we journey with Him.

Yes, the Lord wants us to be excited about heaven and the place He is preparing for us there, but He also wants us to be fully engaged in His mission while we are here.  As well, while we wait and work the Father expects us to enjoy the world He has made and the loved ones He has placed in our lives.  In marital terms, He wants our betrothal to be a reflection of the celebration to come.

The Guest List

Wedding reception guest lists can be tricky.  There are always those who can’t come and a few who don’t RSVP, but attend anyway.  One expert suggests approximately two-thirds will respond and an additional ten percent of non-responders will come, but there is no perfect ratio.

How do you suppose a bride and groom’s family would feel if no one responded?  In Matthew 22:1-14 we find out, at least from a first century perspective.  Jesus told a parable about a king who prepared a wedding feast for his son.  At the appointed time he sent some servants to his invited guests to tell them everything was ready, but they refused to come.  The king graciously gave his guests another opportunity.  He sent more servants to tell them the feast was “really, really ready”, since he had already butchered his oxen and fattened cattle.  Still, his invitation was rejected.  Some of his invitees went about their business and the rest seized his servants to mistreat and murder them.  This last treacherous act put the enraged king over the edge and he sent his army to destroy the murderers and burn down their city.

But the king still wasn’t finished.  After all, his steaks were getting cold and his son and his bride were probably very hurt and embarrassed.  As a last resort, the king sent more servants into the streets and told them to invite everyone they saw, good and bad.  Before long, the feast was hopping.  What an eclectic group of guests it must have been with the very best and the very worst members of the community in attendance.  Some, no doubt, had never been to a king’s feast and one guest in particular decided there was no need to dress up.  Either he was capable of more, or merely refused to wear some special wedding clothes the king has provided for those less fortunate.  We can only trust the king, having already shown considerable patience, had reason to be offended.  He confronted the speechless guest and had him tossed out into the darkness where there was “weeping and gnashing of teeth.”  Talk about getting bounced!

As with all of Jesus’ parables, He had a listener or listeners in mind.  In this case He was thinking of those who had rejected His Father’s messengers throughout the ages.  In the Old Testament evil kings had persecuted and killed the prophets, and during Jesus’ earthly ministry the Pharisees had hatched a plan to murder Him.  Why would people do such things?  Perhaps it was because the Father’s plans were not their plans.  God wanted to establish a spiritual kingdom where citizens pursued Him with all their hearts, minds, souls and strength.  But leaders like the Pharisees were more concerned with institutional status quo where they had the power to make the rules and proclaim themselves righteous.

How sad!  In the fullness of time the Father sent His Son to the world, and the very people who should have been excited to see Him rejected Him.  The Father begged them to come to His party, but they stayed home.  He had no choice but to consign them to darkness.  It must have hurt Him to think of what might have been, but what else is a Father to do when the people you love want nothing to do with you?

Most of us can understand why the father in Jesus’ parable was unhappy with those who rejected His son.  But what about the man who was cast into darkness for failing to wear the right clothes?  He accepted the invitation, but while he was chowing down on his filet mignon, some big guys with gold rings and oversized biceps threw him to the ground, tied him up and tossed him out.  Ok, so we don’t know what the bouncers looked like, but it wasn’t pretty.  Why?

A lot of people believe the problem with the guest who was dismissed was his sin of presumption.  He didn’t recognize or acknowledge that his invitation was undeserved, and the king interpreted his careless attitude as a sign of disrespect.  In spiritual terms, he was equivalent to one who believes he has earned God’s favor with his own righteous acts.  While it is true God is pleased by righteousness, the core message of the gospel is that no one can attain salvation on his own.  It is an undeserved gift from a gracious Father.  Just like the father in the parable God understands we don’t belong at His table, but He still expects us to be grateful.

I must be honest and tell you I have been slow to admit I am a part of this parable.  I have focused mostly on those who refused to come to the party and forgotten about the one who came with the wrong attitude.  I am pretty certain I am not like the former, and I have relegated the latter to one of those anomalies of scripture I may never understand.

Now I’m not so sure.  When I think of the feast, what do I see?  Well, for the most part, I view myself in party mode, with angels swooping, confetti spewing, saints singing and the Lord Jesus speaking words of comfort and joy.  I still expect to find this spirit of celebration in heaven, but it’s time to make a confession.  I have not thought much about the incredible sense of gratitude I must have when I stand before my Savior and consider where I would be without Him.  Technically, I should not say “I made it!”  It would be much more accurate to proclaim, “He has brought me here, praise be to Jesus!”

The more I think about it, I would expect nothing less of a bride who has been chosen by her groom to be his helper for the rest of his life.  The same is true of the groom who can’t imagine why his beautiful bride would agree to be with him.  My father used to tell me, “Son, you know we married up.”  He was right.  Why my wife said “yes” when I asked her to marry me is a mystery.  Why I asked her is not.  Married couples who love and respect one another have an abiding sense of gratitude for the decision their mate made to journey with them through life.

God didn’t have to create us, and when we sinned against Him and went our own way He wasn’t obligated to take us back.  Every breathe we take is a gift from our Father, and His grace is nearly inconceivable and completely undeserved.

Yes, I will celebrate at the feast, but I hope I also have the good sense to be better than the guest who presumed he was good enough to be there.  With tears in my eyes and my face on the ground I want to be able to say, “Thank you!  Thank you!  Thank you!”  This is the nature of the guest list: sinners saved by grace consumed by the thought of the blood-stained cross.

In Revelation, chapter seven, there is a reference to those who have come through a great tribulation.  Their struggle was horrific and their losses heartbreaking, but they were eventually rewarded with God’s eternal comfort.  John writes: “they are before the throne of God and serve him day and night in his temple; and he who sits on the throne will spread his tent over them. Never again will they hunger; never again will they thirst. The sun will not beat upon them, nor any scorching heat. For the Lamb at the center of the throne will be their shepherd; he will lead them to springs of living water. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes” (Revelation 7:15-17).  Did you catch that?  He will “spread his tent over them.”  In other words, when we get to heaven we will be sheltered by God as His permanent household residents.  Eternal life, then as now, is all about living in the presence of the Father and the Son.

Please don’t misunderstand.  There will be definition in heaven.  We will have bodies specifically designed for an immortal environment.  We might even live in a mansion, although I prefer a large Spanish villa in the Florida Keys over a contemporary spread in Beverly Hills.  I have nothing against Beverly Hills, but if there are such things in heaven I would rather be near the warm Gulf waters than the cold Pacific.

Have you ever thought of Jesus as a Bridegroom preparing His wedding shelter for the church?  It changes things a bit, don’t you think?  Instead of directing sub-contractors with a hard-hat on His head, Jesus is carving out a shelter for His Bride with a wooden plane and awl.  He steps back to review His work, and as He thinks of us He contemplates how to make it more beautiful.  He asks the Father to inspect His work, and He can’t wait to come with His angels to tell us the time has come.  We often speak of how exciting it will be to see Jesus, but have you ever considered how excited Jesus will be to have His church in heaven, free from persecution and covered with His protection for all eternity?

Jesus is preparing a place for His us.  We know the way to the place.  What?  You don’t know the way?  Sure you do!  He is the way, the truth and the life (John 14:6).  In Him we put our trust, and through Him we receive our eternal home.  We know the way, and He is Jesus.

Jesus Prepares a Place

In the upper room Jesus’ disciples were confused and worried when He told them He was going away.  Where was He going?  If they were to join Him, how would they know the way?  We now know Jesus was talking about heaven, but it is no less difficult for us to imagine what takes place there.

It is interesting how my personal perspective has changed in regards to what Jesus is doing to prepare a place for me in heaven.  As a kid I envisioned heaven as a replica of Beverly Hills resting on white fluffy clouds.  I presumed Jesus was busy overseeing the construction of my own private mansion, complete with a huge columned porch, a winding staircase and a swimming pool.  Then someone told me the word translated “mansion” in older Bibles was probably closer to a room extension on God’s big house (John 14:2).

But now I wonder if the living space Jesus is preparing is patterned after the wedding shelter built by bridegrooms in His day.  If so, then Jesus wasn’t talking about a place as much as He was a relationship, or a presence. The wedding shelter was a temporarily dwelling where a groom and his bride became husband and wife.  In the same way, Jesus could be preparing a shelter to symbolize our transition into eternity.  This may be why He said, “And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am” (John 14:3).

If this is the intent of Jesus’ words to His disciples we should hardly feel as though we have been downsized.  On the contrary, we have received an upgrade.  Instead of rattling around in a mansion by ourselves we are going to be sheltered by the Lord.

The Wedding and the Feast

The long walk of love leads into the eternal presence of Christ.  He and His Bride are wed and the feast begins.  Of course, I have been employing a metaphor of my own within a metaphor, since wedding practices in our modern Western culture are much different from that of Jewish families in Jesus’ day.

The process then was long and purposeful.  When a man chose a wife, he worked out the details with her family and entered into a contractual agreement.  From that time on the two were “betrothed”.  They didn’t live together and were not sexually intimate, but their agreement was legally and socially binding.  Once betrothed, the groom went to his father’s house to begin constructing a shelter where his marriage to his bride would be consummated.  The shelter had to be constructed with great care, and was supervised by the groom’s father even though it would only be used for seven days.

While the groom worked on his project at his father’s house, his bride wore a veil to show she was “spoken for”, and lived a pure life of reflection.  She also put a lamp and other items beside her bed so she would be ready when her groom appeared.  Her waiting time varied, but the span involved at least nine months as additional proof of her purity, and a season that gave the groom an adequate opportunity to finish his shelter.

When the groom’s father gave his stamp of approval to the wedding shelter, his son gathered his wedding party and traveled to the bride’s home.  It was customary to give her some advanced warning he was coming, but only so she wouldn’t be taken by complete surprise.  As the groom came near, his friends would shout to announce his arrival and blow a shofar.  The bride would join her groom and the two of them would travel back to his father’s house and enter the shelter.  Once the marriage was consummated and proof of the bride’s purity was given to the best man, the couple was considered husband and wife.  Then the marriage feast began.

This is another one of those places where men like me get a little uncomfortable with our designation as the Bride of Christ.  But, let me put your mind at ease.  There is nothing bizarre being suggested by the marriage metaphor in regards to this process.  And remember, it is a collective word picture which includes everyone in the Lord’s church.  This was merely the best way for God to communicate Jesus’ faithfulness to us and our commitment to holiness until we see Him face-to-face.  Also, just as there is great rejoicing when humans marry, there will be joy in heaven when we appear before our Bridegroom, cleansed by His blood.  If this is the first time you have heard of these ancient marriage customs, it may now be apparent to you why Jesus told His disciples He was going to prepare a place for them as He celebrated the Passover the night of His arrest.

It is good for us to take some time to consider some other biblical teachings in light of this understanding.  Far from making us uncomfortable, the connection between wedding traditions and our first encounter with Jesus in eternity should fill us with enthusiasm.  Get ready to celebrate.  The party is about to begin.

That His Bride Be Honored

I once officiated at a “Category 1” wedding.  On the weekend of the wedding a Category 1 hurricane was making landfall in our community and no one knew for sure how bad things would get.  The military base chapel where the ceremony was scheduled to occur was forced to close, and the bride’s father had to negotiate two large rooms at a nearby conference center.  Fortunately, the hurricane didn’t hit as hard as predicted and we were able to celebrate as family and friends while the wind howled outside.

Honestly, a part of me was afraid to venture out that day, but I knew I  had no choice.  You see, the bride’s mother had passed away a few years prior, and her father was fiercely determined to give his daughter the wedding day she deserved.  How could I  be selfish when the father of the bride was literally pouring himself out at the altar to make things work?  And how could I let his deceased wife down, even as she rested in the arms of Jesus?  The bride had to be honored.

I know Christ’s Bride looks ragged at times.  She is misunderstood, misrepresented, and blamed collectively for the ungodly actions of a few.  The neighborhood bar is praised as the place where true friends are made and the church is accused of shooting its wounded.  But if this is an accurate depiction then why are so many people shot in bar parking lots, and why do their family members turn to the church for help?  I am not saying authentic friendships aren’t formed in places like bars, and I am not suggesting church people always treat one another as they should.  I do, however, believe the clichés people use to characterize the church are often unfair and misguided.  When we accept them and speak them, we reinforce the flawed rationale those close to us use to reject Christ.  It is time to stop picking on the Bride, and it is definitely time for her members to cast off their shame.

In his first letter to Timothy the Apostle Paul encouraged him to guide the church in its conduct.  He wrote, “if I am delayed, you will know how people ought to conduct themselves in God’s household, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and foundation of the truth” (1 Timothy 3:15).  We find two important principles in this verse:  First, the church belongs to God.  It is His household, and whether or not people behave as they should, He still claims her.  Secondly, we must be encouraged to live up to the Father’s expectations and never lose sight of His glorious vision for the church on earth.  We shouldn’t spend our time demeaning the Bride because she isn’t always what she should be.  Instead, we should cling to God’s dream for her and rise to the challenge.

I know the church is full of sinners and often misses the mark, but you must know I am of Welsh Appalachian descent.  Where my people come from you have to be really careful what you say about someone’s family, and especially someone’s daughter on her wedding day.  We certainly don’t want to be blind to our faults, but we could use a little more loyalty to the household of God.

Here’s to the Bride!  She is Christ’s beloved and deserves the highest honor.  Our Lord died to make her holy.  Why would we ever think less of the one He gave His life to save?

That His Bride Be Honest 

With an adequate credit line and some help from a coordinator a father can provide a beautiful wedding ceremony.  But only the bride can bring a transparent relationship with God that reveals both external and internal beauty.

When we meet a bride with these qualities we say she has “poise.”  She is confident in herself and the days ahead.  Others admire her because she isn’t shaken by difficult circumstances, and though capable of carrying her own burdens, she is also willing to carry the burdens of others.

Similarly, when the Bride of Christ is at her best she moves with splendor as she stands in grace.  She doesn’t shrink from trouble, or the spiritual battles of this world because she has acknowledged her sin, embraced the glory of the cross, and opened her heart to the transforming work of Holy Spirit.  She is not arrogance since she knows her radiance is imputed, not earned, and she shares what she has been given freely with her world (Matthew 10:8).

The kind of honesty the Lord seeks for His Bride is both quantitative and a qualitative.  Recently I sampled some cupcakes baked fresh by a wedding caterer.  My criteria were simple: did they contain the ingredients as advertised and were they any good?  Unfortunately, due to the critical nature of my mission I was pressed into eating four different kinds of cupcakes.  I am happy to report all of them passed the test, down to the last bite of cookies and cream.

It is common for people to say they want to worship with “authentic” Christians, listen to a preacher who is “real” and leave with something “practical.”  First-time guests in our congregation have told me, “Your church family is so genuine.  I can feel it!”  I don’t mean to sound ungrateful, but I take these kinds of compliments with a grain of salt.  Certainly, we must be doing something right for people to feel this way, but in my heart I know authenticity is more than a good first impression.  Baking four delicious promotional cupcakes is one thing.  Creating several hundred is another.  Coming through when the oven quits and the delivery truck breaks down shows character.

Some believers think the church has lost its genuine nature.  They point to modern innovations and believe we have replaced the simplicity of faith with a “show.”  But allow me to share some truth.  I have been in the church environment all of my life and have lived through countless transitions in methodology in congregations of many sizes.  Showmanship is nothing new.  In the days when churches hosted weekly revival meetings they could choose from a plethora of traveling Christian entertainers.  There were gospel quartets, preachers who sang their sermons at the piano, artists who shared the gospel with chalk, midgets, weight lifters and movie stars.  We put up posters around town, hung a banner on the church building and asked our members to “fill a pew”.  Oh, and we gave prizes to the “winners.”

Putting on a “show” is not necessarily a sin if we are just trying to illustrate something in a way that will capture people’s attention.  But the church that remains is the one people are drawn to after the show is over.  It is the place they go for love, encouragement and truth in the changing seasons of life.  Honest churches never get caught up in accolades, but rather burn with a desire to share Jesus with the world.

Honesty is a tricky attribute since the prophet Jeremiah reminds us, “The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it?” (Jeremiah 17:9)  I get amused when churches advertise their worship to be “authentic.”  Is it really possible for anyone to self-proclaim authenticity?  Yet, the goal remains.  We want to be known as sinners, saved by grace.  We have nothing to hide because our past has already been hidden in Christ (Colossians 3:3).  We want people to see us as “real” because we want them to know we have a common need for a loving Savior.

God doesn’t want His Bride to pretend, nor does He want her to be overly burdened by the past.  She is what she is because He has cleansed her with His Son’s own blood.  When we comprehend the price that was paid to redeem us it is hard to be anything but real in our brokenness.  The Father loves His Bride when she tells the world He is her salvation, and why.  Here’s to the honest Bride of Christ!  May she be the substance behind the show!

What does a holy church look like?  As you answer this question be careful not to focus on outward appearances.  I have worshipped with a lot of great congregations in my life I would define as holy, but no two of them looked the same.  One was a large city church where we stood and sang “Holy, Holy, Holy” as our leaders walked out in formal style to take their seats on stage.  Another was a small country church where large stained glass windows were left open during worship and people used funeral fans to stay cool.  During the sermon we could hear tractors puttering in the background and watch wasps circle the room.  I have worshipped with believers in storefronts, inner cities, rescue missions and college campuses.  The holiness of each was not determined by clothes, musical styles, age or socio-economic status.  Instead it was expressed in people’s obedience to God’s will and their passion for His mission.

This is the holiness the Father desires for His Bride.  He wants her to pursue His will and mission enthusiastically so that her holiness occurs naturally.  Certainly, she will need to consciously strive to be holy, and guard against every scheme of the evil one.  Yet, the Father wants the right heart followed by the right actions, not the latter without the former.

A church with the right heart is an attractive church.  People want to be around her because she doesn’t spend all of her time describing the difference between right and wrong.  Instead, she talks about her Father, and the Lord Jesus who waits for her at the end of the long walk of love.  Sure, she teaches what is good, righteous and holy, but her love for the Father and the Son are so infectious those around her say, “Oh, I see now why she wants to be holy.  It isn’t because she wants to condemn us, but rather because she is in love with someone greater than us all.”

We should be so deeply in love with the One who made us and redeemed us our hearts break when we fall short of His holiness, and thrill at the thought of His grace.  Here’s to the Bride of Christ!  May she be holy that through her others might know the Holy One!

That His Bride be Holy

Before I proceed with our second toast, I feel a need to clarify my personal perspective on the holy character of a bride.  There are two ways in which a bride might be holy.  First, she saves herself for the man she marries by remaining sexually pure until her wedding night.  Secondly, she remains pure with the man she has chosen to marry until her wedding night.

I realize many people will read these statements and automatically wonder what planet I am living on.  We frequently read data indicating a large portion of our culture no longer holds to these values.  In fact, some might say it has become the “norm” for couples to become sexually active before marriage, and to enter into marriage only after they have decided they are ready for a commitment.

It is not my desire here to condemn those who have a different perspective than mine, or to create sorrow in the heart of those who wish they had waited for their wedding night to consummate their relationship.  I am aware some have also been pressed into a sexual act against their will, and have been made to feel unworthy through no fault of their own.

Yet, I don’t believe we can understand the biblical example of a holy bride apart from its teaching on marital purity.  I also think it is a misnomer to call the practice of preserving sex for the marriage bed as “old-fashioned” or “traditional.”  It is neither.  It is simply what the Bible teaches.  And while other behaviors are certainly becoming more common, I think we should be careful when labeling anything “the norm.”

Jesus died to make the church holy (Ephesians 5:26), as He washed away our sins through His blood.  When we place ourselves under his cleansing grace we begin the process of walking the walk, also called “sanctification.”  As we take the long walk of love in preparation for our meeting with Jesus, we do our best to keep ourselves unstained by the world.  Will we sin?  Absolutely!  But daily we call on the Lord’s grace, and we strive to please Him by living for Him and Him only.  This is the Father’s wish for us: that we remain holy, even as He has made us holy, and as He is holy.